MMA fighter War Machine attempts suicide in jail

U.S. Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter War Machine has been placed on suicide watch after he attempted to hang himself in his jail cell.

The sports star, real name Jonathan Koppenhaver, is currently behind bars awaiting trial on 32 charges relating to an alleged bust-up with his ex-girlfriend and her new lover in August.

He has now been moved to an isolation unit after a guard at Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas found him unresponsive on Tuesday. He was treated by jail medics and later given the all-clear before being moved and placed on suicide watch.

Officials also found a suicide note in his cell.

Koppenhaver’s lawyer Brandon Sua tells Reviewjournal.com his client was "pretty much dead" when the officers found him, and he told a court hearing on Wednesday that the sportsman has been suffering from depression and anxiety since his arrest because "he feels like the chips are stacked against him".

The 32-year-old has denied a raft of charges including two counts of attempted murder.